Bow Ties
by trufflemores
Summary: I'll let this one speak for itself. Quick summary: Blaine has a bow tie addiction, and Kurt finally sits him down to curb his collection. Fluff and stuff. Klaine. COMPLETE.


**Disclaimer**: I do not own Glee or any of its characters; Ryan Murphy and Co. hold that honor. I'm simply writing this for fun, not profit.

Blaine frowned down at the neat rows of bow ties spread out on top of their bed.

Even though he'd always enjoyed the aesthetic of a good bow tie, after seeing how many he owned he had to admit that Kurt had a point: there was no way that he could wear _all of them_. As it stood, his current collection permitted him to wear a different bow tie every day for the next four months, and even though preparedness trumped spontaneity almost every time in his books, he still recognized that some of the bow ties needed to go. Still, parting with any of them had proven to be a more difficult challenge than he had bargained for; every time he reached for one he hesitated, then slipped his hands back into his pockets and reexamined his choices, frowning thoughtfully.

Even the holiday-themed ones, obvious choices for collection-trimming purposes, were hard to part with. All of the bow ties were in relatively pristine condition, gently handled and lovingly arranged, and their vibrant colors and exciting patterns were irresistibly pleasing to him, regardless of what those patterns were. Removing even a single bow tie from the rows seemed to make the entire collection seem off balance, and he replaced it quickly, not wanting to single out any of the bow ties as lesser than their brethren.

Drawing in a deep breath, he considered packing them all away and tackling the problem another day. Surely it wouldn't do him any harm to delay the project a few weeks, months, even years for good measure? Decided, he was about to unbury the bow tie boxes from under the bed when Kurt knocked on the doorjamb and he froze, guilt written across his face as he blushed.

"H-hey. Kurt. You're home early," he said, voice only a little halting as he turned to face Kurt.

Kurt looked at him and then the bow ties with an expectant sort of air, sighing when he realized that Blaine's _Giveaway _box was still empty.

"Need a hand?" he asked, slinking out of his uniform apron and draping it over the back of a chair. "We have to thin it out _some_, B."

"I know," Blaine agreed. "It's just – harder than I thought it would be to let them go," he admitted.

"Hm." Looking down at the bow ties, Kurt bit his lip for a moment, at last sashaying forward and saying, "Let me try something."

Blaine had already laid the bow ties out according to color, flashiness, and even based on decorations, but Kurt set to work moving the bow ties into four distinct groups: festive, formal, informal, and neutral. Blaine helped him to sort them out once he deduced the different categories, stepping back to admire their handiwork once the bow ties were completely reorganized. "Now choose ten for each," Kurt instructed, kissing his cheek and disappearing through the curtain as Blaine groaned, aware that more than half of his collection was doomed to go.

Still, it was slightly less agonizing to part with the bow ties once he could see the similarities between certain pieces. Some were nearly identical, featuring the same bold stripe pattern or the same combination of colors. He was able to discard the repeats easily, relieved that he was making some progress until he realized that he was still eight bow ties short of his goal in each category. And so he painstakingly removed the ties that were least likely to match future outfits (a few had even been carefully hoarded for hitherto unknown outfits, a fashion choice so uncharacteristically preemptive that it had only ever been applied to bow ties), the ties that were worn to the point of fading, and at last the ties that, when compared with their shinier, sleeker, and generally more compatible kin, simply didn't meet the mark.

Finally, nearly an hour into the agonizing process, he was able to look over the remaining bow ties and relax once he realized that he'd brought the total down to forty-five. Not exactly Kurt's goal, but close enough that he couldn't complain, either.

Pleased, he carefully shut the boxes filled with the donation-designated bow ties before venturing out into the living room where Kurt was, tapping away on his laptop.

"How did the sorting go?" he asked Blaine, setting his laptop aside as Blaine sighed and rubbed the back of his own neck.

"About as well as you would expect, but I think you'll be happy with the results," he said. As the high of success wore off, dread and trepidation sank in. Surely he couldn't part with so many of his beloved bow ties at once without dire consequences for his image? He wouldn't dump all of his hair gel out for the sake of trying something new, after all. Abandoning so many bow ties felt akin to sawing off a limb; he felt sick just at the thought.

Feeling anxious, he followed Kurt into the bedroom, fully prepared to explain why they didn't actually _need _to get rid of any of the bow ties, before he stilled once he saw the remaining bow ties on the bed.

Arranged in neat rows and representing a broad range of colors and patterns for various occasions, they didn't seem remotely lacking. On the contrary, Blaine was amazed at the diversity of his collection, struggling to even conceptualize how he could possibly be disappointed with so many options to choose from. With the giveaway ties tucked away out of sight, he looked at his remaining bow ties and felt a sense of peace settle over him.

He didn't have to surrender _all _of his bow ties. Just a few of them.

"I'm proud of you," Kurt said, letting his gaze trail over the remaining bow ties before he smiled at Blaine. "I know that this was hard for you, but it'll be worth it in the end."

And, indeed, in the space left behind by the old bow ties they arranged other things, managing their space more constructively. The vacancies left in Blaine's wardrobe were minimal, but it still came as a pleasant surprise to him one evening when Kurt gave him a sharp purple bow tie as a gift.

Indeed, his collection remained small and occasionally subject to future reductions, but the space was room to grow for both of them, and Blaine couldn't be happier with the results.


End file.
